This invention relates to air extraction. It relates in particular to an air extraction hood mountable over a cooking surface, and to a cooking installation incorporating such a hood.
According to a first aspect of the invention, there is provided an air extraction hood, which comprises
a canopy defining an enclosed air collection and treatment zone, and having an operatively downwardly directed air inlet through which air to be treated can enter the zone, as well as an air outlet through which air can be discharged from the zone, the canopy being mountable with clearance above a cooking surface such that its inlet is located above the cooking surface;
mounting means for mounting treatment means inside the canopy in the collection and treatment zone, between the inlet and outlet;
passageway defining means defining an air passageway between the inlet and the mounting means along which air can pass, with at least part of the passageway defining means being curved over at least a major portion of the distance from the inlet to the mounting means, to enhance air flow along the passageway.
The canopy may be square or rectangular in plan view, and may have a roof, a front wall, a rear wall spaced from the front wall, and a pair of spaced side walls spanning the space between the rear and front walls. In use, the rear wall can thus be mounted against a wall from which the cooking surface also protrudes.
In other embodiments of the invention, two of the canopies may be located side-by-side with a common rear wall, with each canopy then having its own mounting means and passageway defining means. Instead, or additionally, two of the canopies may be located side-by-side with a common front wall or a common side wall. When the canopies are located side-by-side in this fashion, then naturally the canopies, or portions thereof, can be of integral construction and/or the common wall, or a portion thereof, can be omitted, if desired.
The air inlet will then be provided by or in the lower or underside of the canopy. The air inlet may thus be defined between a first inlet defining member extending between the side walls and located in proximity to the front wall; a second inlet defining member also extending between the side walls and located in proximity to the rear wall; and the side walls, eg the operatively lower edges of the side walls.
The passageway defining means may then comprise the side walls, a first passageway wall between the first inlet defining member and the mounting means and providing a first air deflection surface, and a second passageway wall between the second inlet defining member and the mounting means and providing a second air deflection surface, with at least a portion of the second air deflection surface being curved over said at least a major portion of the distance between the inlet and the mounting means.
The first inlet defining member may be the operatively lower edge of the front wall and/or the operatively lower edge of the first passageway wall. Similarly, the second inlet defining member may be the operatively lower edge of the rear wall and/or the operatively lower edge of the second passageway wall. The first and second inlet defining members may thus extend parallel to each other.
The second air deflection surface may be curved along the entire distance from the second inlet defining member to the mounting means, and may be curved along its full width, ie the entire distance from the one side wall to the other side wall.
The second air deflection surface may be concave or dish shaped, when the hood is viewed end on or in vertical section along a plane extending parallel to the side walls.
Similarly, the first air deflection surface may be curved along at least a portion of the distance from the first inlet defining member and the mounting means. Thus, the first air deflection surface may be convex shaped, when the hood is viewed end on or in vertical section along a plane extending parallel to the side walls.
The second inlet defining member may be located at an operatively lower level than the first inlet defining member, when the hood is mounted in position. In other words, the depth of the hood at the rear wall may be greater than its depth at the front wall.
The mounting means may comprise brackets at the upper ends of the passageway walls for releasably holding the treatment means. The hood may thus include treatment means held by the mounting means. The treatment means may comprise a filter for filtering oils and fats from contaminated air passing through the hood. In particular, the treatment means may comprise separation apparatus as described in European Patent Application No. 963083779.9, which is hence incorporated herein by reference. The mounting means will thus be such that the separation apparatus is located at an angle to the horizontal to permit fats and oils which are separated from air to collect in a collection zone thereof located at a lower level than the air inlet of the separation apparatus.
According to a second aspect of the invention, there is provided a cooking installation, which comprises
a cooking hob; and
an air extraction hood as hereinbefore described, mounted above the hob. The invention will now be described by way of example with reference to the accompanying diagrammatic drawings.